I never really planned on buying a home deck MD player/recorder. I was happy with my portable. But, when I was in a local audio shop and they had this unit for sale for only $250 (!) dollars, I couldn't pass it up - it was also the last boxed unit (according to the sales person). But still, for $250, you can't go wrong.
This player is just incredible! I love it and I use it almost non-stop! I won't go into the features because the reviews below do that quite well, but all I have to say, is that this player/recorder is LOADED! I would reccommend this guy to anybody! Looking back, I would have happily paid $350 for this player.

All I can say is that this deck is the best yet, the overall performance is fantastic...For the price at $400.00 dollars this deck has a lot to offer.Built last, sound great, pitch control, R-Core transformer, Coaxial/Optical (in and out), edit functions, and digital level control....You name it everything that a deck should have. Basically, it's built like a high end (ES) Sony deck, without suffering your wallet.

I have used this unit with only the analog inputs. This is the main reason why I bought this model, for the current pulse DACs. The lesser models (520) only have the hybrid pulse DACs. These are chips that have both, the ADC and the DAC incorporated in them. Since I planned on recording my vinyl, some digital radio, and some analog radio, I went with the better DAC system. Let me tell you, IT PAID OFF! I recorded some of my Greatful Dead songs off of CD. They have great definition and very wide dynamics. The recording proved to be unidentifiable. I was wanting to hear the differences I've heard so much about when recording analog. I heard nothing different from the master. With the editing ease and a $3 disc price compared to the $30 CD-RW Music Disc, why would any one want to go to CD-R. Hek, it's not even compatable with many CD players. That is the only reason why most people go that route. The 520 might sound as good if you use the digital inputs. I just can't believe how I have such control over editing. When I record analog radio, I can splice every syllable so that the announcer states the name before each song. Normally the anouncers state all the songs in a list after the last of 4 - 5 plays. This editing makes the songs title known to all. This is useful when experimenting with New Age music. Many of the artists and songs are unknown to the newcommer. This is a very relaxing sound and a nice way to learn new artists who you can pay your respects by purchasing some of the music at your local store. The feature list goes on and on with even a coaxial input. That way if you use your DVD player as your reference CD player also, you can connect the optical output to your Dolby Digital input and connect the digital coaxial output to the mini-disc player's coaxial input. This is another main reason why I went to the top model. The 520 only offers optical inputs. Sony for some reason is so stuck on optical. Their old 915 DD receiver didn't even offer any coaxial inputs, making them incompatable with many DVD player's Dolby Digital/PCM output. They have fixed that on their newer line. This is one heck of a player. I must give it 5 stars seeing that it can do no more than what any demanding recording audiophile could expect!

This is Sony's top of the line consumer (non-ES) MD deck. It's awfully close to an ES deck, though. It uses a current pulse (rather than hybrid pulse) DAC, has an aluminum anti-resonant faceplate, variable bit length output, level sync matching (for analog *and* digital), not one but *two* optical inputs, a coax input, and coax/optical output. There's also digital and analog gain control.In fact, this deck has almost as many editing features as my MDS-JA50ES, and that's a $2,000 deck. There's even an "idle display" when you leave it on for more than 10 minutes without a disc in it.

This is probably the best deal in minidisc available right now. These decks are about $350, and they're built like ES gear. The differences between this deck and an entry level MD deck (like the 520, or even the Kenwood 1050 or 1090) are astounding. If you're thinking about getting into MD, save up a little money and check out the 920 rather than the 320, 510, or 520. The only other thing to consider is the soon to be released MDS-JB930 which is this deck with a PS/2 keyboard input for easier titling.

For value, sound, and features, this is easily a 5 star deck.

I have had this unit MDS-JB920 for close to a year now. I have had no problems at all with it. I have noticed disc's played in it sound better and the analog output is excellent. I had a 520 and it had audible high pitched noise in the analog output. I would recommend this unit to anyone when it was $400.00 ++, now that it is in the $200-300 range it is an even better deal.